War of the Dreis
by Soulfirestory
Summary: A new villain rises. A war is about to start. Can the next generation handle it? R
1. Chapter 1

**Fanfiction**

**Final Fantasy VIII**

**War of the Dreis**

**By Annie Cho**

Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VIII. I do not own the name "Cloud" from Final Fantasy VII or the name "Rukia" from Bleach but I do own the personality of Rukia and Cloud. I also do not own the system of 'chakra' from Naruto.

_Chapter I: Rude Awakening_

In the forest, a warrior family sleeps in a wooden cabin peacefully. Meanwhile, outside of the cabin, ten armed people wearing red bandanas are ready to ambush them. The father wakes up because he senses something is wrong. He peeks out of the window and sees the ten armed men. He quickly wakes his wife and his six year old daughter from slumber. They peek out the window when the father points at it. They do not see anything. The father looks at the window, and he realizes it is too late. The men kick down the front door and begin to attack them. The father fights them off while the wife and the daughter have time to run.

The mother and daughter are running to the emergency hideout, which is a cave. Unexpectedly, the emergency hideout became the base of the people pursuing them. They run out of the cave and are pursued by ten more people. Two of them were women. They corner her near the cliff. The enemies surround her. She has no choice but to fight. The daughter joins the mother in the fight. They defeat nine out of ten people, leaving only the leader whose name is Dracula. Dracula is strong. Dracula is ten times stronger than the other ten people the mother defeated. Dracula takes out his gunblade. The mother swings her wolf claw. Weapons clash, echoing throughout the space. The mother swings her wolf claw again. This time, Dracula disappears in front of her. He ambushes her from behind and splits her in half.

"Surprise," Dracula says, laughing wickedly.

The daughter, enraged and afraid, strikes Dracula savagely but misses every time. She manages to avoid Dracula's attacks. The daughter stops to catch her breath. Dracula looks at her amused. She strikes again but Dracula kicks her off the cliff, so powerfully that afterward she spits blood.


	2. Chapter 2

_Chapter II: A New Villain_

The daughter lands in water, in a splash. Dracula leaves, assuming she is dead. The currents guide her slowly towards Balamb's shoreline.

On the beach, Squall, the principal of Balamb Garden is practicing combative skills with his son, Cloud.

"You have improved since the last time I saw you. But you are not there yet," the Squall says.

"Yes sir!" the son shouts.

Behind Squall, the son sees a girl floating in water towards them. Squall catches his son not concentrating and flicks his forehead.

"Ow!"

"A monster would have killed you just now, if you pause like that."

"Sorry dad, but there is a girl behind you."

Squall looks behind him. The son assumes his father is unguarded and punches him. His father catches his fist.

"You are not there yet," the Squall smiles.

Squall turns and walks up to the girl. He bends down on one knee to look at her. "She is similar to Cloud's age," Squall thought. Squall carries the girl on his back and heads back to Balamb Garden. The son follows along.

The father lays the girl on the bed in the infirmiry, in front of Dr. Kadowaki. Dr. Kadowaki. Dr. Kadowaki is the female doctor of Balamb Garden.

"Who's that girl, Squall?"

"While I was training Cloud, we found her unconcious by the beach."

"Dad, can I stay?" Cloud asks.

Before Squall could answer, a blond spikey-haired guy rushes through the door.

"SQUALL!"

"Calm down what is it, Zell?"

"Quistis needs you! It's urgent!"

Cloud looks at Squall, hoping he will let him stay.

"Dr. Kadowaki, take care of my son while I am away."

Squall then immediately follows Zell.

Dr. Kadowaki sighs. "We are all busy," she says.

Cloud sits on a seat beside the bed. Dr. Kadowaki returns to her paperwork. Cloud curiously looks at the girl's face.

"Wow. She is pretty, and cute," Cloud thinks.

The girl slowly opens her eyes. Cloud is a little startled.

"Dr. Kadowaki!" Cloud yells.

Dr. Kadowaki walks to the bed. The girl sits up to regain her senses.

"You're awake," Dr. Kadowaki says.

The girl looks around her.

"Where am I? Who are you?" The girl says.

"You are in Balamb Garden, a school of military education. I am the doctor here. Sorry we did not introduce ourselves. I am Dr. Kadowaki. The boy who sits next to you is Cloud. While training, Cloud and his dad found you unconcious around the shore. They picked you up and carried you here."

The girl looks at Dr. Kadowaki for a moment. Dr. Kadowaki smiles.

"Say your name for me," Dr. Kadowaki says.

"Rukia," the girl says.

"Good. Now could you tell me how you drifted ashore?"

Rukia pauses and then says, "I dunno."

"Where do you live?"

"In the forest."

"Where is your family?"

Rukia does not give any response.

"Well, Rukia."

"...They're...dead.." Rukia does not look at Dr. Kadowaki as she says it. She also does not let out any tears.

The infirmiry becomes silent for a moment.

"How?" Dr. Kadowaki then asks.

Rukia does not answer.

"I am sorry dear. I am truly sorry. I ask too much," Dr. Kadowaki says. "But you can stay here. A lot of students here are orphans just like you." Dr. Kadowaki smiles.

Rukia looks around her. The infirmiry is very tidy and peaceful. She then sees Cloud.

"Hello," Cloud says.

Rukia feels friendship and warmth radiating from the boy. She finally relaxes because of him. She looks around the infirmiry again. The curtains are slowly moving because of the wind. The room is quiet. This seems like a safe place.

"Can I stay?" Rukia finally speaks.

"Of course you can!" Dr. Kadowaki says delightfully. Dr. Kadowaki then exhales. "Cloud, your mom will pick you and Rukia up after your dad finishes with his conference," Dr. Kadowaki says and goes back to her desk to finish her paperwork.

The infirmiry is silent again until Cloud speaks to Rukia.

"How many pushups can you do?"

"About a hundre'd."

"Me too. Let's do more than that. Let's see who can do the most pushups, while we wait."

"You're on!"

While Rukia and Cloud competes, an important conference is held in Squall's office. Quistis tells her comrades the news she has received.

"Reports told that a cult called the Dreis had risen in power. The name of their leader is 'Dracula'. He started and organized with one hundred necromancers as his followers. We never have necromancers in our world. (These sages are individuals who have magical powers to summon monsters to aid them.) Their troops are millions of monsters. The source of their powers and the location of their base are unknown. The Drei's plan was to rule the world and turn it into a system of monarchy. The Dreis wanted to have all power to themselves. The countries would not let the Dreis rule, so the Dreis decide to conquer the world by force. Winhill and the regions around it were already invaded by them. All the other Gardens already have allies that could help them. We are the only Garden that does not have an ally. That is a major problem. We could be a vulnerable target."

"I thought the world is at peace after Ultimecia's death. Now this...," Squall thinks. "Great, what are other options?" Squall says in his mind sarcastically. Something suddenly pops up in his mind. "We could use GFs," Squall says to his comrades.

"I agree. We can control GFs. We can summon them to aid us in battle," Zell says.

"How many GFs do we have?"

"Sixteen, that we gathered from our journeys, plus a number of GFs from other SeeDs-that is about fortyone."

"That's good enough. Is there anything more, Quistis?"

"Yes. Before we are dismissed, we should work the students harder. Most of the students know what is happening now. The Dreis probably know that we are going to resist their rule. They would kill anyone who opposes them. All of the students oppose them. The Dreis enjoy torturing and killing rebels for their desire. If we let them rule us, we might have to kill innocents. I rather die than kill an innocent. This is not a game. This is about survival," Quistis said.

That is the end of the conference and everyone, except a lady with a blue dress is dismissed.


	3. Chapter 3

_Chapter III: A New Family_

"Rinoa, while I was training Cloud we found a girl by the beach. She was about Cloud's age. I left her in the infirmiry with Dr. Kadowaki. Cloud stayed with her too. I do not know the girl's identity but I am sure Dr. Kadowaki will question her. She will tell you about the girl. If she does not have a home, you can let her stay in Edea's school."

"Should I go to see Dr. Kadowaki now?" Rinoa says. Squall nods.

"Like I promised. I will meet you and Cloud on the Ragnarok."

Rinoa smiles and leaves. She rides the elevator to the first floor and goes to the infirmiry.

"Hi Rinoa," Dr. Kadowaki says.

Cloud and Rukia are doing pushups. They stop in the middle when Rinoa comes in. They look up at her.

"This is Rukia; her family is dead. She does not know why she was drifted ashore and refuses to tell the cause of her family's death." Dr. Kadowaki says. "Squall and Cloud found her unconcious on the shore and brought her here."

Rinoa looks at Rukia. Rukia seems to be emotionless when she is doing pushups with Cloud. She then focuses on her objective.

"Cloud, Rukia, we have to go. Both of you can continue your pushups when we get back to Edea's School."

"Aw. Man," Cloud stands up. Rukia follows him.

Rukia, Cloud and Rinoa waves goodbye to Dr. Kadowaki. They leave garden and walks abroad the Ragnarok spaceship to travel to Edea's School. Squall is already waiting for them. Squall pilots the Ragnarok.

While Squall is piloting the Ragnarok, Cloud and Rukia decides to walk around the Ragnarok. When Rukia's back is facing Rinoa, she casts a spell on Rukia.

"Scan," she says in her mind and forms the hand seals.

The spell goes towards Rukia. Squall sees it and smiles. The spell is harmless. It's function is to confirm someone's identity.

Rinoa scans Rukia. Rinoa finds out that Rukia's last name is Rafiki. Rukia is the child of a retired SeeD and an Ex-Drei necromancer. She confirms Rukia's identity. Rukia is telling the truth. She tells Squall about it.

"Rafiki? I remember him. He was one of my classmates. In terms of combat skills he was ranked the third. Right after me and Seifer. This is interesting. I am going to tell Zell and the others," Squall says.

When they reach Edea's School; Edea and Cid, the old couple and owners of the school welcome them. Rukia stays there for the rest of her life. Squall frequently visits the school to spend time with his family. Rukia becomes part of the family.

On the next day, Squall returns to Balamb Garden. He proposes a meeting and tells his comrades about Rukia.


	4. Chapter 4

_Chapter IV: Hidden Emotion and the Truth _

"You found Darren's daughter?" Zell asked.

"Yeah," Squall said the second time.

"I wonder where have he been. I haven't seen or heard of him since that mission to investigate a group of people."

"What group of people?"

"He said it was top secret and a dangerous mission."

"How long ago was the mission?"

"The mission was assigned to him and his team at the same time when we were assigned to Timber, which is about 8 years from now."

"Something's not right. A mission should not take this long."

"Helllllooooo! Do we exist? Who is this Darren?" Selphie says. She is a brunette with a yellow dress.

"Sorry, Selphie," Zell says.

Squall and Zell explain their past experiences with Darren. "Darren is... okay.. i guess. He is very... social."

"Teehee. The opposite of you Squall," Selphie says.

Squall ignores her.

"Darren hardly talks to Squall because of his usual coldness but Darren is a funny, popular, nice, straightforward and righteous dude---"

"This is the first time I see you give someone this much of a compliment," Irvine interupts. He dresses like a cowboy with a long fur coat.

"Shut up and let me continue. We met during the first year of Balamb. I remember back in those days he always defended me when Seifer picks on me. But we went to different classes as we grow. When we were in different classes, Seifer starts picking on me again."

"There **is**something not right about this," Quistis joins in the conversation after she checks Darren's records on her personal laptop. "He disappeared for 8 years right after the mission. He never reported back to Garden. How did he end up having a daughter all of a sudden?"

"When I scanned her, I found out that her mother is a necromancer."

Everyone except Squall who had heard the fact looks at Rinoa.

"This must be deeply connnected to the Dreis," Quistis says.

"Since, you are all busy. Let me and Selphie look into it," Irvine lays his arm around Selphie's shoulder. "We'll act as a couple and pretend to travel around places."

Selphie pushes him away.

"Ok. That's decided," Squall says, ignoring Irvine and Selphie.

Suddenly someone knocks on the door. Everyone turns their attention to the door.

"Come in," Squall says.

It is Dr. Kadowaki. "There is something really important I have to tell you. It concerns with Rukia."

"What is it?"

"Rukia's ribs have been bruised and fractured. But I healed it with curing spells to recover it. It's okay now. But I wonder where she got it from."

"We'll go and investigate. We are also discussing about Rukia. But keep our investigation a secret."

"Yes, I will. After all, you are the headmaster of Balamb Garden."

Edea's orphanage is built near a beach. Sometimes Edea and Cid will let the children play on the beach on their free time while they watch over them. Other kids are running around. They are laughing happily, including Cloud. All the kids are having fun except Rukia. Rukia did not talk or socialize with others. Rukia stares at the water all day and sometimes hits it savagely. She answers when someone talks to her. If not she will just stare at the water all day.

Rukia looks in the water. She sees her own reflection. _I hate myself. I can't do anything while my mom and dad is in danger. Arrrggg. _Rukia hits the water and the sand savagely.

Edea looks at Rukia with concern. "Cid."

"Yes, I know Edea," Cid says.

"Something is not right the moment I first see her. When she plays with Cloud, she never laughs. Her face shows no emotion. A normal kid should be lively. Even though a kid is tired, you still see life in them. But... she looks like a kid that is..." Edea pauses when she sees Rukia staring off into space. "..half dying."

Cid and Edea observes Rukia. Rukia is too absorbed in her own world to notice.

During bedtime, Rukia has a hard time sleeping. She rolls around her bed constantly. She can finally sleep three hours later. But she always had bad dreams.

_"Rukia! Mary! Run!" Darren yelled._

_Mary ran with Rukia. They bumped into the cave. When they discovered that their hideout became the enemies' base. They were forced to a cliff. Mary fought and killed all the followers except one. He was ten times stronger than his followers. He disappeared in front of Mary, sneaked behind her and sliced her in half. _

_"Mom!" Rukia yelled._

_She clenched her fist and punched him. The fist hit him and then he slapped her._

Rukia wakes up from her dream. It is not her mother's murderer who slapped her, it is Cid. Rukia feels the burning pain on her face. Edea hugs her stomach in pain.

"I'm sorry...I'm sorry...I'm sorry..." Rukia runs out of the door.

The next day, Cid calls Squall.

"This is Squall, the headmaster of Balamb Garden. How can I help?"

"It is me, Cid. I really need to talk to you. It is about Rukia."

"How is she doing?"

"I want you to search her past."

"We are currently searching for Rukia's past sir."

"What did you find?"

Squall hesitated. _Why does he want to know?_

"Can you tell me what is going on?" Squall says.

"Rukia dreamwalks. When she dreamwalks she attacks people. Yesterday, she punched Edea."

"Tell me more."

"Rukia... looks as she is half lifeless. She stares at the shore all day. Sometimes she hits the water. All the kids are afraid of her."

"Okay. We are currently searching for Rukia's past and her parents. I sent Selphie and Irvine to investigate but I have not heard from them yet."

"Okay. That is all Squall. And don't call me _sir_. Call me Cid because I am not the headmaster anymore. You are. I will not be taking your time. But thank you for hearing me out."

"No problem."

"Okay, bye bye."

After hearing from Cid, Squall wonders how is his older sister, Ellone doing. Suddenly an idea pops in his mind. _Dreams. Past. Wait a minute. Ellone has the ability to look at somebody's past. She used to make all of us _(Squall and his comrades)_ dream about the past about Laguna. Maybe Ellone can..._

Squall calls Ellone in Esthar. He is one of the few people who has Ellone's phone number because she is the president's daughter. Even though Squall is the president's son, he does not live in Esthar with the president. Squall has his business to tend to.

"Sis,"

"Squall? Is that you? How are you doing?"

"Can you lend me a hand?"

Squall explains Rukia's situation to Ellone.

"Can you look into Rukia's dream?"

"Okay. I'll tell father I'll be coming to Edea's orphanage."

"We will be picking you up tomorrow at 12:00pm by Ragnarok."

"Okay."

"Bye Bye."

Squall hung up and went back to his papers. Irvine and Selphie arrived an hour later.

"We got news. We secretly disguised ourselves as Dreis and got info. It seems that Darren was in love with a woman who was a necromancer named Mary. She became a necromancer because she was an orphan. Dracula trained her and gave her a home. To return the favor, she became Dracula's trusted follower. Later, she became Dracula's right hand. However, she always doubted herself. She never smiles. She was told to kill people even though she did not want to. She obeyed Dracula's orders to kill people because she wanted to repay the debt of giving her a home. However, her life changed when Darren appeared. Darren was a captive. Darren told her to change her ways. Darren cared about her despite her being a serial killer. Mary also did not want to continue to kill people. She wanted to be happy. Therefore, Mary freed Darren and they ran away from the Dreis forever. When Dracula found out, he was outraged. He felt that Mary betrayed him. Mary also knew too much about the organization. He commanded his men to kill Mary and Darren. However, the Dreis did not found the couple for ten years until a month ago."

Squall nods. He then orders them to be quiet while he makes an annoucement on the microphone.

"Zell, Rinoa, Quistis please come to the third floor."

The whole team meets on the third floor. Squall explains Rukia's situation to them. Irvine and Selphie told the team what information they have gathered.

"This **is** linked," Quistis says.

"I felt sorry for Rukia," Selphie says. "Let's all visit her."

"If we all go we will set up a commotion but I will let you know how she is doing. Besides every kid in here must have a sad past. I don't see why we waste time on one kid and neglect others. You all signed up to be the teachers in the Garden. I suggest Rinoa and I go. We usually visit Cloud." Squall turns to Rinoa. "Let's treat this as another visit to see how Cloud is doing."

Rinoa smiles. Selphie smirks angrily and turns away from Squall. Irvine tries to cheer her up.

"Zell, I have a favor to ask you. Can you drive us to Esthar and to Edea's orphanage?"

"Sure."

"Ellone, or Sis can tell a person's past by knowing them. She will be a great help, so I called her."

The next morning, Zell steers the Ragnarok to pick up Ellone. Zell then steers Ragnarok to Edea's orphanage. Once Zell lands them next to the orphanage, he left as usual.

"Give me a call if you are leaving!" Zell yells before he leaves.

Squall gives him a signal to show he receives the message. Zell leaves. Ellone, Rinoa and he walks into the orphanage.

Squall, Rinoa and Ellone decides to spend three nights in the orphanage. They arrived but Rukia takes no notice to them. She stares at the water on the shore in front of her.

Cloud pulls Rinoa away to play with him. Ellone walks up to Rukia.

"Hi Rukia," Ellone sits next to Rukia.

Rukia looks at the water and sees the reflection of herself.

"That's you, do you see?"

Rukia looks at the reflection intensely and hits the water savagely. She runs away from the water. She runs to crouch in a corner.

"Okay, Everyone! Who wants to test their own skill?" Edea asks.

A lot of kids respond with "Me!" Rukia is the only one who is quiet.

"Okay. Let's take turns." Edea turns to Rukia. "Rukia, how about you go first?"

A few kids smirked at Rukia because of her cold attitude. Rukia stands up. She slowly walks towards Squall. Edea hands her a wooden stick.

"Alright, Rukia. Are you ready?" Squall points at her a wooden stick.

Rukia looks at him. Her face starts to show a little bit of emotion. She is amused.

Squall hits her with the stick. Rukia avoids it by pivoting to the side. Squall immediately recognized the style. It was Darren's style of combat. Squall hit Rukia again but Rukia blocks it.

Both of them backs up. Rukia goes up to Squall. Squall remains stationary. Rukia jumps above Squall. The other kids look in amazement. She lands behind Squall and strikes him before she her feet lands on the sand. Squall blocks the attack. He turns and points the wooden stick towards her throat. Rukia backs up in time to avoid it. Rukia and Squall rushes forward. They both tries to land a their wooden sticks on each other.

The children cheer.

"Rukia's awesome! This is the first time I see another kid who can dodge Squall's eighth attack," a kid with red hair says.

Cloud looks at her in adoration and amazement.

Rukia remembers that her dad used to train her in combat by using wooden sticks.

"Dad," Rukia whispers.

Squall sees Rukia off guard and strikes. Rukia dodges again. "Very good. But try this," Squall strikes his sword horizontally. Rukia jumps to avoid. Squall sees an opening. He lifts his wooden stick and hits Rukia. Rukia fell backwards.

Cloud goes toward Rukia. He helps her to get up. "Can you teach me? Plzzzz?" Cloud says. Rukia nods.

During dinner, Cloud gives her a chicken wing. Rukia decides to return the favor by giving him a chicken leg.

"Thank you," Rukia says.

Cloud smiles and starts eating.

During night, the girls sleep in one room and the boys sleep in another room. Rinoa and Ellone sleeps in the same room as Rukia. Rukia rolls around the bed as usual.

"What's wrong?" Ellone asks.

"I can't sleep," Rukia says.

"Ok. Rinoa."

Rinoa casts a sleep spell on her.

Rukia immediately falls asleep.

Moments later, Ellone starts to witness Rukia's dream. Rukia struggles with her emotions in her dream. She sees everything.

_MOM! _Rukia sees Mary being sliced in half. Dracula laughs wickedly. _I'm scared. What should I do? I'm.. all alone._ Rukia sees Dracula laugh. This angers her. _I'll kill you. _Rukia rushes to Dracula.

Rukia bounces out of the bed with her eyes closed. Rinoa notices her dream walking. Meanwhile Ellone dreams Rukia's dream. Rukia starts to kick the desk and then punching the mirror. Her legs are bruised and her fist is bloody. The mirror shatters. Everyone wakes up after all this racket. The boys rush to the girl's dorm to see what is going on. Squall stops them.

"If we rush in we may make the situation worse. Let them handle it," Squall says.

When Rukia hears the mirror shatter, she wakes up in shock. Rukia falls back on her butt. Ellone is in the same state. She wakes up in shock too. Rinoa notices Ellone's reaction and does her best to help Rukia. Rinoa reaches out a hand to Rukia.

"We're here to help you," Rinoa says calmly. "Tell us. What happened?"

Rukia looks at her. She is the only person who acknowledges in this type of state. Rukia hugs Rinoa's waist abruptly. Rinoa is shocked for a second but regains herself quickly.

"He killed my mom and dad! I hated myself for not being able to do anything! I was scared... I don't know what to do...It was all bloody. My mom is covered in blood. I really wanted to kill him because he destroyed my home!" Rukia cries. "I can't stop dreaming about it."

Rukia backs up. "My mom says that cuts, scrapes or broken bones can be mend easily. What about here?" Rukia points at her heart. "I felt like he stabbed me right here."

Rinoa hugs her gently and pats on her back to calm her. "Don't be sad. You are not by yourself. You have us. We can not substitute your parents but you have us who care about you." "You have a lot of siblings here," Rinoa looks at the girls. Rukia looks at them too. The girls smile.

"We did not have parents too, so we have this one big family. Sometimes we do not get along but we are all a family," one of the girls says.

Rukia smiles for the first time. Ellone starts to calm down.

"Rukia, you already did your best. Dracula, the man who killed your parents has thiry years of combat experience. You are only a beginner. Dracula has killed and broken apart many families. His sins will return to him someday. If you want to kill Dracula, you need to get yourself in a good shape. Anger shrouds a fighter. Have you heard of the saying?" Ellone says to Rukia.

Rukia shakes her head

"If you want to defeat him someday, you need to make yourself healthy. Being sad and mad all the time is unhealthy. We can not take your pain away. You are the only one who can do that. But we will guide you along the way," Ellone says.

Rukia looks at Ellone. Ellone smiles.

Rukia finally falls asleep immediately after she cries happily for an hour.

Rukia's mood improved after she told Rinoa about her pain. After three days, Squall, Rinoa and Ellone leaves. Ellone and Rinoa gives their report on Rukia to Squall. Ellone goes back to Esthar. Squall and Rinoa returns to Balamb Garden. They tell their comrades about their trip.


	5. Chapter 5

_Chapter V: A day right before the big exam..._

Time passes by in a blink of an eye. Rukia is now sixteen. She lives in a dorm of Balamb Garden since when she was eleven. Rukia and her classmates graduated from Edea's School when they finished the fifth grade. All the classmates are spread to other Gardens or schools in other cities/town. Fortunately, Cloud attends the same Garden as Rukia does. Cloud sees Rukia often during lunch. Lunch is the only time they get to sit together and talk like buddies.

"Tomorrow's the SeeD exam. We are all going to meet at 8:00am." Cloud says. He is wearing a no zipper, blue high neck jacket and black shorts.

"Yeah." Rukia wears an unzipped red high neck jacket covering a white t-shirt and black pants. The inside of the jacket is tan, so the collar exposing tan.

"Did you finish your prequisite?" Cloud asks. He wears his dad's silver lion necklace.

"Yeah, I did it a three days ago," Rukia replies.

Cloud's jaw drops. Rukia is always organized and ahead. "I took the test yesterday."

"How'd it go?"

"Piece of cake. How many minutes did you choose?"

"Ten. You?"

"Same here. How many minutes did it take to obtain the item?"

"Five minutes."

Cloud drops his jaws again. Rukia knows that Cloud probably does not beat her. There are a hundred monsters in the path during the exam. Rukia getting pass them in five minutes seem to be bizarre.

"How much did it take for you?"

"Six minutes and and fifteen seconds. That is still good!"

Rukia yawns.

"You did not get sleep last night again?"

"Yeah."

Cloud always want to ask Rukia why she can not sleep. When Cloud asks, Rukia always changes the subject. Cloud then decides not to bother.

The bell rang. Both Cloud and Rukia goes to their own classes. Cloud is taking Silent Language next and Rukia is taking Monster Biology. In Monster Biology, the students learn about monster's strengths and weaknesses. The morning classes are workout classes which include Weapon Handling, Spells, GF junctioning and GF summoning. GF is short for _guardian force_. _Guardian Forces_ are spirits who have special magic powers. SeeDs let the spirits possess them to aid them in battle. SeeDs need to perform hand seals to summon GFs while spells do not need to perform hand seals to cast them. The afternoon classes are mostly studying. They include History, Silent Language, Monster Biology and Battle Strategies.

The classes end and Rukia decides to go to the training center to be ready before the exam. She took a navy blue gem out of her desk. The gem contains a GF inside. Rukia's gem contains a GF named "Shiva." Rukia squeezes the gem to junction the GF into herself. She immediately feels more powerful and energetic. She then goes to the training center. Meanwhile, Cloud junctions his GF into himself. His gem is dark blue, nearly black. He then meditates in his dorm. By meditating he can mold chakra. Chakra is a combination of spiritual energy and physical energy. Spiritual energy is the energy everyone has, which is thinking. Physical energy is the energy people get from exercising. By combining them people can use energy to cast spells.


	6. Chapter 6

_Chapter VI: The Unexpected_

The alarm goes off in 7:00am. The participants of the SeeD exam wakes up. Every participant is required to wear the SeeD uniform. Rukia equips her gunblade. Cloud equips his gauntlet. Both Cloud and Rukia equipped their GF before they went to sleep yesterday. They change to their SeeD uniform and starts their morning routine.

All the participants are waiting around the hall. Rukia does not feel like socializing before the big exam. She waits quietly. Cloud runs toward the crowd. Squall and Rinoa walks up to the map in the center of the hall. Everyone becomes quiet.

"I am sure you all are aware that this is a big exam. Life and death matters, so be careful. Garden does not train heartless killing machines. If you are hurting innocents, you will be disqualified and kicked out of Garden. Also, you all must obey orders from the captain or else you fail. Rinoa will now announce the teams. Good luck."

Rinoa holds her list and calls out names. Each team is a group of three. The team are assigned as letters; squad A, B, C, etc. The names pass. Some students that are happy to be in the same group as their friends cheer. The others just whine.

"Cloud Leonhart, Red Almasy and Rukia Rafiki," Rinoa calls out. "Cloud is the team leader of Squad J."

"Awesome! Rukia we are on the same team!" Cloud yells.

Rukia gives a thumbs up to show approval. Red does not feel like talking. Red was Rukia and Cloud's classmate during their education in Edea's School. He was a bully who likes to look for fights. He is still a bully now. Time is going to be needed to deal with Red.

The team quickly walks to the car that guides them to the Town of Balamb. The ride takes half an hour. Cloud does the driving. No one has the interest to talk during the ride. When they reach the Town of Balamb, the team quickly moves to the ships that are waiting for them.

On the ship, an older SeeD gives them a brief summary of the situation.

"My name is West. I will be giving you the info and summary of this mission. I am sure you have heard, the Dreis have just taken over the whole continent of Galbadia. To prevent them from crossing the ocean to Balamb we must stop them head on. Galbadian SeeDs are already defending Dollet. The Galbadian Soldiers are defending Deling City. Our mission is to defeat the army of monsters and the sages controlling them in Timber. Here is the map of Timber."

West shows the map of Timber on the screen. The team listens as West tells them the way around the streets of Timber.

"Squad J, which is the three of you are the leading squad. The leading squad explores and kills the enemies. The other squads secure the areas you have been to. You three will be getting out of the SeeD ship first. Return to the ship at 5:00pm. You will be disqualified if you misses the ship," the older SeeD says.

"That's it?" Red asks.

"Yes."

"Awesome. But I don't like easy missions though."

"It won't be easy. The army of monsters defeated a thousand troops of Galbadian Soldiers."

"Hmm. Interesting..." Red leans back to the seat. He crosses his arms behind his head and crosses his feet on the table.

Both Rukia and Cloud has no comments. They dislike Red ever since their childhood. Red tries to pick a fight with Rukia on her second day at Edea's School. Rukia beats him up badly and Red never tries to pick a fight with Rukia again.

West turns the screen on to display the ships progress.

"We will be there in fifteen minutes. Get ready," he says.

Red also has a gunblade but a different model than Rukia's. They polish their weapon. Cloud practices his punching.

The SeeD ships reaches land and everyone rushes out of the ship. They head towards Timber. Squad J sees five undead type monsters guarding the entrance. They cast support spells on them and kills them. The undead monsters fade away after their death. Monsters fade away after their death as usual. Support spells have a negative effect on undeads and zombies. The other squads secure the area. When they reach the train station, they see a sage commanding them. Rukia quickly recognizes him. He was one of the murderers that took part in her parent's assassination.

Rukia fills with rage but controls herself. In front of her stands twenty monsters. Red lunges towards the monsters. He kills them one by one and finally reaches the sage. He pulls the trigger and slashes his gunblade. Red's slash can not get through because the sage cast the 'protect' spell. The spell creates a barrier. Rukia lunges herself at the sage. She holds the gunblade on her right hand and molds a spell on the left. "Dispel!" She yells. The barrier is disspelled. She goes in front of him and cuts his head off. Strangely, the sage fades away like the monsters fade after their death. Usually humans do not fade away after their death. The other squads secure the area after the sage's death. Cloud watches the time on his watch, it is now 1:15pm.

"I should get the credit," Red says.

Rukia and Cloud ignores him. The team continues to the kill the monsters and sages they see. Rukia and Cloud stands with their backs facing each other.

"Rukia, how much did you defeat?" Cloud asks.

"Ten," Rukia says.

"I defeated twelve!" Cloud cheers.

"Good. but I"ll do better next time--" Rukia is cut off when she sees monsters surrounding her. "It's not a good time to talk."

Sometimes they come across corpses but keeps going. They finds another sage. As Red lunges at the monsters, Cloud casts 'haste' on Red. Red's speed increases and kills the monsters. Before the sage can cast a spell, Red already cuts his head off. Red does not thank Cloud for his spell and continues the objective. Cloud does not care and also continues the objective. The other squads comes to secure the area. He checks the time again, it is 3:18pm.

The team continues to explore the town further. The other squads follow. The number of monsters decreases because two of their commanders are dead. They reach the radio station and finds the leader, Dracula.


	7. Chapter 7

_Chapter VII: Vengeance_

Rukia's eyes fill with hate. Cloud also notices this but continues the mission. He always keep a watchful eye on Rukia. Cloud and Red is surprised to see Dracula on their SeeD exam. Both of them knows that there will be no easy games from now on. Dracula is the leader of the Dreis and the most powerful sage in the whole organization.

"It's you...Wow. You have grown. I should have known. I underestimated you when you were little. This time I will finish you off," Dracula says.

Rukia's anger rises. Cloud and Red are confused of Dracula's words. She lunges her gunblade at Dracula. Cloud casts 'haste' on Rukia to increase Rukia's speed. Dracula takes his gunblade and defects Rukia's attack. He attempts to knock Rukia's blade out of Rukia's hand but Rukia catches the grip. While Rukia distracts Dracula, Cloud and Red summons their GFs. The GF possesses the user and attacks Dracula with stronger magic.

"Mega Flare!" Cloud yells. Cloud throws four huge fireballs at Dracula. The fourth one has the most chakra molded into it.

"Mega Cannon!" Red yells at the same time. Red holds his gunblade like a gun that points towards Dracula. He pulls the trigger. The gun releases a huge blast of beam.

The assaults hit Dracula's back. Dracula is forced to bounce back because of the power of the GFs. Dracula gets angry and summons his GF, Centipede.

"Absorbtion!" He yells and swings his blade at the air. The attack hits the whole team. Centipede posseses Dracula and aids him by giving him the power to drain. Dracula can now drain off the opponent's health to heal himself. The GF also takes part in absorbing the drained health besides Dracula. Unexpectedly, Centipede's attack can travel to three yards away. The person closest to the attack will injure the most. Rukia manages to avoid a direct hit but is injured. Dracula's slash makes a deep cut on Rukia's stomach. Blood splatters out afterwards and she faints. Red takes Rukia's place to fight Dracula. Cloud uses healing magic on Rukia. After he heals Rukia, he checks his watch. The watch says 4:47pm.

Gunblades clash, the two men fight intensely. Suddenly Dracula disappears and appears behind Red. Red notices and when Dracula swings his gunblade he blocks it. Blood begins to come out of the corner of Red's lip. Red's gunblade also cracks.

"Remember? I still have the GF possessing me." Dracula says. "I can use the power whenever I want to."

Red begins to split blood. "Pbbff. Damn it," Red says and falls backward unconcious.

The other squads members see this and fights Dracula but they are immediately killed. The other squads carry their dead teammates and retreat.

"Well. You are the only one left. You are tough and I had fun. I will also finish you off." Dracula says. Meanwhile Cloud casts haste on himself. _Haste_. He poses his hand in a buddhist pose.

Cloud knows that if they do not return to the ship now, they will fail the SeeD exam. It takes three hours for them to walk around the town. He runs toward Red in an abnormal speed. Dracula swings his gunblade at Cloud but misses. Cloud carries Red and Rukia toward the SeeD ship. Unfortunately, Dracula also casts 'haste' on himself. Now this is a run for the team and including himself's survival. Cloud's heart is pounding. Dracula is on his tail.


	8. Chapter 8

_Chapter VIII: Mission Failed_

Cloud finally reaches the SeeD ship. Just when the door starts to close, Cloud jumps. The door closes in time before Dracula reaches in time for jump. Cloud immediately drops Rukia and Red on the floor of the ship. He runs toward the controls and immediately moves the ship out to the ocean. Dracula slashes the air again. This time, Dracula misses because the ship is out of range. Dracula kicks and whips the sand with his gunblade.

"What happened?" West asks.

"We met Dracula. Dracula wants to kill us. That's why I am in a hurry to move the ship," Cloud says.

"Dracula? But this is a SeeD exam. The SeeD exam participants are still inexperienced."

"I know that. I am going to report it to the principal." Cloud says.

During the ride, Cloud heals his teammates with his magic.

When they return Balamb Garden, the nurses carries his teammates to the infirmiry. He sees the other SeeDs that have fought Dracula have been in the same state as Red and Rukia. Both Red and Rukia are still unconcious. Cloud then goes back to the dorm to rest. The results of the exam will be told tomorrow.

The next day, Cloud plans to go to the infirmiry to visit his teammates. During his walk, his father makes an announcement.

"SeeD participants, meet at the second floor hallway."

Cloud quickly runs to the infirmiry but does not find his teammates nor the other SeeDs. Dr. Kadowaki tells him that they went to the second floor to here the results. Cloud quickly runs the staircase to reach the second floor hallway. There Rukia and Red stands waiting for the result just as Dr. Kadowaki says. Rukia crosses her arms as she leans against the wall. Red stands somewhere faraway from Rukia. The other SeeDs are either sitting or standing. They are all scattered. The hallways is full of tension of excitement and anxiety.

When the Garden Faculty arrives, everyone straightens and stands up. They all holds up the SeeD pose. Squall and the teachers arrive with the Garden Faculty.

"I apologize for my mistake. I never thought Dracula will be in Timber. I will not take away the passing grade from anyone because of mission failure. I know that saying this is not enough so we will hold a funeral ceremony after we anounce the results. So DO NOT leave."

Some of the SeeD participants frown but the speech continues. The Garden Faculty calls out the names of the SeeD participants that passes the exam. Tensions rise. Those whose name are called out cheers happily. Those whose name are not called waits anxiously.

Finally, Squad J's names are called out, "Red Almasy. Rukia Rafiki, Cloud Leonhart."

Cloud cheers. Rukia and Red are silent.

"That is all. Those who does not pass still have chances. SeeD exams are held anually. So do not worry. Now we will head outside to the graveyards of dead SeeDs," the Garden Faculty says as he finishes his speech.

Everyone goes outside of Balamb Garden. Some SeeDs put flowers on top of the graves. Squall makes a short speech of the great deeds they done while living to honor them. Everyone bows. After the bow everyone returns to the first floor hallway to be dismissed.


	9. Chapter 9

_Chapter IX: Is this the way I should live?_

Cloud walks next to Rukia.

"Rukia, there is a question I want to ask you for a long time," Cloud says.

"What is it?" Rukia asks.

"What do you dream about at night that causes you to lose sleep?"

Rukia does not answer.

"Is it related to Dracula?"

Rukia stops walking.

"I think its time you tell me. I can tell by your actions while we fought Dracula yesterday."

Rukia gets annoyed but she has a feeling that Cloud will follow her around if she does not answer.

"Dracula killed my parents eleven years ago. He attempts to kill me back then but I survived."

Cloud pauses a moment and then says, "I am sorry."

"You don't need to be sorry. The principal and the staff knew. They must have kept it a secret."

Rukia then walks away. Cloud walks next to her again.

"Let's go around the school playground," he says.

"I am not in the mood."

"Come on," Cloud ignores her answer and pulls her arm to go towards the school playground.

Rukia reluctantly follows him. They sit on the bench. In front of them are a group of girls playing jump rope. A group of students sit on the other bench across from them. They are chatting happily and playing with each other. On the other side across from them, a guy sits there by himself studying. At another area, boys are playing soccer.

"What is it?" Rukia asks.

"Look around you," Cloud says.

"I looked around already."

"Pay attention to their faces."

Rukia looks at everyone around her on the playground.

"What do you see?" Cloud says.

Everyone one is happy at what they are doing. Rukia thought herself as different from them.

"Nothing," Rukia answers.

Cloud ignores her answer. He says, "I see happiness in everyone who is here."

"What about it? They are not me. My parents are killed by Dracula. They would have lived if it isn't for him."

"Do you think revenge is better than happiness?"

"No."

"Then why waste time to be angry at Dracula? Yes, Dracula has done a lot of bad deeds but he does not care about the families he rips apart. In the end the only person who suffers the most is the avenger. Life is short so live life happily and righteously. There are so many people who are looking for happiness. Looking for happiness is not running from obstacles. It is facing obstacles and fighting it. Fighting it so they can be strong to overcome obstacles."

"What are you going to say? Just say it." Rukia knows what Cloud is going to say. She just wants him to be straightforward.

"Forget about revenge and look for happiness, Rukia. Revenge dulls the blade. I am sure you heard of that expression before."

Rukia looks at the sky. She is deep in thought. Cloud decides to walk away to give her some space. Cloud then goes outside of Balamb to sharpen his combat skills.


	10. Chapter 10

_Chapter X: The Base of the Dreis_

"Are you sure you are going to let Rukia participate in this?" Rinoa says.

"She did well on the SeeD exam when she is facing Dracula," Squall says. "Squad J contains the best SeeDs in here. Rukia is the best in Squad J. Besides Cloud, Rukia and Red, I do not think anyone else stands a chance."

"Let's call everyone okay?"

Squall calls his comrades to the third floor over the microphone. They all meet a few minutes later.

"Let's vote, shall we let Rukia participate in the assassination of Dracula?" Rinoa says.

Everyone votes.

"Rukia has what it takes to kill him. I am sure she can remain calm," Quistis says.

"Rukia is a tough lady," Zell says.

Everyone agrees.

Rinoa gives up and joins others.

A week passes. Rukia is lying on the bed in her dorm. There are no missions recently. Rukia gives a deep thought in Cloud's words. Cloud is right. Only the avenger will suffer and no one will.

The speaker turns on and principal Squall speaks on the microphone. "SeeD exam participants who are in Squad J, I, F, and G please come to my office on the third floor."

_Strange. _Rukia thought.

Anyway, she rides the elevator to the third floor.

Everyone is already there except her. Squall and his comrades arrives.

"We have news of the base of the Dreis. Dracula appears in Timber because his base is next to Timber. This time we are going to infiltrate Drei's base. Unfortunately, all the other SeeDs are on their own missions so we have to choose the SeeD participants with highest scores. This is an important mission that puts the world at stake. The level is even higher than the SeeD exam. Like I said, on the battlefield life and death matters. The teams are going to be the same as the SeeD exam but different squad names. I don't think I need to call out the names again."

Everyone immediately goes into their squads.

Squall continues, "The squads who lost a member please come forward."

Two squads come forward.

"From now on, you are Squad B and C. The leading squad of the SeeD exam come forward."

Rukia, Red and Cloud come forward.

"You will continue to be the leading Squad and you will be supported by Squad B, C and D if anything goes wrong. You will be named Squad A. The remaining Squad please come forward."

The Squad does as told.

"You will be Squad D. Squad D guards Squad A's back. Squads B guards left and Squad C guards right. Cloud will be your leader."

Everyone nods.

"The mission will be tomorrow at 6:30am sharp. We will not wait for anyone. You all can be excused."

The next day, everyone is really sharp and ready for battle. There are only two SeeD ships. Two Squads ride in each SeeD ship. Each ship has five people. On the SeeD ships, the older SeeDs review yesterday's strategy and tells the location of the base. Everyone listens. When they reach Timber, they all rush out of the ship. They open the underground door and enter one by one.

"Be careful. They probably have traps lying around," Cloud says.

They all cast 'haste', 'protect', 'shell', 'aura' and 'float' on themselves. They avoid all the traps and finally reaches Dracula.

"I am impressed you all can avoid my traps so easily," Dracula says. "But you are going to die here."

Seventeen sages comes out of hiding. They throw spells at the SeeDs but misses.

"Squad B and C combine forces! We are all going to attack six sages per Squad!" Cloud commands.

"YES SIR!" all the Squads replies.

The raid is successful. The other Squad members are reliable comrades. They execute six sages as told. Now it leaves only the leader, Dracula.

"Squad B, C and D guard our backs!"

The other Squads immediately follows.

Now Red, Rukia and Cloud has to combine forces to be able to eliminate Dracula.

Red and Cloud summons their GFs. Rukia lunges toward Dracula and casts 'haste' on herself at the same time. Gunblades hit each other again.

"Rukia, no!" Cloud says. Red also gets annoyed.

"Still haven't learned--" Dracula is cut off when Rukia disappears in front of him.

Rukia ambushes him and steals his gemstone. Dracula notices Rukia behind him and punches Rukia. The force of Dracula punch makes Rukia bounces back while her teammates hit him with GF spells. The GF spells make Dracula spit blood afterwards.

"You..." Dracula says. Dracula lost his gemstone and that weakens him. The GF spells becomes more effective.

Rukia's teammates are surprised. Rukia ignores their emotion and summons her GF.

"Diamond Dust!" Rukia forms her hand seals. Rukia gathers cold air to her palms. The cold air forms a huge cold energy ball. She then throws it at Dracula. The energy ball is thrown into Dracula's chest. The energy ball then explodes from within Dracula. Ice spikes are stick out and cracks.

This angers Dracula more and Dracula lunges at Rukia. Dracula slashes Rukia violently. Rukia tries to block his swings with her gunblade. Rukia and Dracula fights one on one a duel. Gunblades continue to hit each other. Whenever Cloud and Red tries a GF spell but it misses. Rukia pulls the trigger on her final swing. The trigger's impact makes Dracula loses grip of his weapon. Cloud and Red casts a GF spell. The spells directly hits Dracula and kills him.

Mission complete. There are no losses of any Squad members. The Squad members return to Balamb Garden's office. They all receive the rise of SeeD rank and salary as a reward. The mission is finally over and everyone rests in piece. Rukia looks in the sky.

_Dear Mom and Dad, I gave up on anger, hatred and revenge. I did that in order to defeat Dracula. And I succeeeded.._

**THE END**


End file.
